Age is just a number.Just like he’s just a boy and I’m just a girl.Except that’s not true, is it?Because fifteen may be a number, but it’s bigger than that. Bigger than us.It’s a number that separates us.An excuse that keeps us apart. But I’m not willing to give in until I get what I want.After all, how many other girls can bring a grown man to his knees with one little smile?
5+ Stars
It’s been almost a week after I finished The Truth About Tomorrow and I still don’t know where to start to write this review. This deeply emotional and highly taboo romance was beautifully written. My feelings were still so raw even after so many days and after reading several mindless reads hoping to balance me out. My eyes were brimming with tears when some simple thing triggered me to think about a certain scene and a particular song was still on repeat in my head. It proved that this book was an exceptional and amazing read that had the ability to haunt me and affect me so deeply.
I’m an emotional reader and tears had fell often when I read. However, there were only a handful of books that made me ugly cry in the best possible way and this one was definitely one of them. Charlie and Ollie’s age gap romance was so different from what I’d read before. Words cannot capture the uniqueness of their connection and chemistry. I felt their internal turmoil, the risk that they were willing to take, the heartache of the consequences, and the gut-wrenching angst. My heart hurt so much for these two broken souls.
I love taboo/forbidden books. There are always different opinions about what is right and wrong. I am pretty open-minded and I believe my tolerance level is quite high because I acknowledge that these are fictional characters. For this taboo story, I’ve accepted their age difference and their adoptive family tie. However, I’m still undecided regarding Charlie’s underage status and mental readiness during some of the events that happened. I think it’s a success for this book in motivating me to think and evaluate my values and believes.
I absolutely enjoyed this emotional, thought-provoking forbidden romance and would highly recommend it to anyone who is brave enough to embrace the taboo and emotional triggers. Don’t repeat my mistake in starting the book on a weeknight hence failing to function normally the next workday. You’ll need time to digest the story. Also, listen to the playlist while you are reading if possible. If you cannot, at the very least, look up “their song”. I guarantee you won’t regret it.
I voluntarily reviewed an advance complimentary copy of this book. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
~ Books & Magic Shop Reviews ~
I feel like I’m in a floating after-state currently. I wasn’t shattered like I was by the end of The Truth About Heartbreak. It’s different with The Truth About Tomorrow. This book is eye opening and emotional once you piece together Ollie and Charlie.
There’s always more than what meets eye. The Truth About Tomorrow is about Charlie, a young foster child who is adopted by River and Everett (main characters from TTAH) and falls for Oliver, River’s adopted brother. He’s twice her age.
The book was actually a journey for me as a reader, shaking my head back and forth between what is right and wrong, what is different and the same. I believed Ollie and Charlie, their story isn’t superficial or surface-level. What they go through digs deep into all of our closets, shedding lights on areas more than just relationship love. A huge piece of this book was about discovering yourself and taking the steps towards accepting and embracing who you are, which both main characters definitely needed.
Just as a quick side note, I feel like I related the most was Everett. I loved that he was there as the character he was and that he had a chance to grow and learn just like I did. That final scene between him and Ollie was the best part of the book for me.
I loved this book and I’ve become a quick, fast fan of B. Celeste. I’ve never read her under her old name, but I’m excited to see what else she’ll write next!!
5 Stars
I recieved an ARC for an honest opinion…
This book was everything and more than what it was hyped up to be! I felt it in my soul! Many of you may not want to read it because of the age difference but do you really read taboo books for the normalcy of it? There is nothing normal or right about the love Charlie and Ollie share. As Charlie says she loved him in layers. Age is just a number when it comes to matters of the heart. I feel the emotions of Everette and River as they learn of the feelings between Ollie and Charlie but you also feel as Charlie struggles through her past and her need of Ollie. All beautiful love stories have obstacles and this ones biggest obstacle is age.
This book is a taboo age gap book with triggers.
Is there such a thing as the perfect book? I’m pretty sure The Truth About Tomorrow is the perfect book. B. Celeste has just taken my heart on a journey through pain and heartache and joy and ultimate love. Ollie and Charlie were everything forbidden. The whole world was against them and I wasn’t sure they were going to find their way through all the struggle and pain. Charlie’s past was absolutely heart breaking. It created hurdles that Ollie was able to jump like nothing more than speed bumps. I loved watching her grow and find her strength with and without him. The storyline was a quick steady pace and I found myself putting my Kindle down and taking moments to simply savor the magic in B. Celeste’s words. This is one of my favorite books of all time and I will definitely be recommending it to everyone!
Now that it’s closer to release, I’m adding my review.
First, some things to cover.
1. You do NOT have to read the first book to read this one.
2. Charlie is NOT 13 for the whole book, nor is she 13 when Ollie falls in love with her. Yes, she’s 16, but this book is forbidden and taboo. If that’s not your thing, that’s cool, but I’ve seen a lot of comments about Charlie being 13 so I wanted to clear that up for people who might be confused going in and wary (because I’d sure be if I thought she was 13 for the whole book)
3. This book spans years–you get to watch the characters grow and evolve.
Okay, now that that’s cleared up … um I really don’t know what to say about this book, lol. Yes, it’s age gap. Yes, it’s a forbidden romance. But Barbara has crafted a story that is so much more than those elements. It’s about a man who’s stuck, trapped in a life that isn’t making him happy, and who feels like because he had a good childhood he has no right to feel so lost. You have a girl, who’s older than her years because of her trauma, who somehow still manages to be optimistic and happy. Don’t get me wrong, Charlie struggles with what’s happened to her, and Barbara does an excellent job portraying this and showing Charlie’s growth through the years. These are two broken characters, for very different reason, who connect on a level they don’t understand. The chemistry is off the charts and slow burning. You feel the push and pull. The pain. The heartache. This isn’t just a book or a story. It’s a journey of two people who have a lot to discover about themselves and a love they feel is wrong but undeniable. I really hope you guys will trust Barbara and give her a chance with this book, because it’s truly a remarkable story that will stay with you and make you think.
The Truth About Tomorrow (TTAT) by B. Celeste is an interconnected novel to The Truth About Heartache. To have the full experience I do recommend that you do read The Truth About Heartache prior to TTAT. This book will have you on a roller coaster ride, as well as give you a book hangover for days.
This book is not for the faint of heart, as it is emotional, raw and at times hard to read, as Charlie is a minor and Oliver is 15 years her senior. Definitely a taboo topic, but Ms. Celeste wrote it in a way, which was mind blowing.
“The truth about tomorrow is that it isn’t enough. Tomorrow isn’t guaranteed. It isn’t promised. Love means risk. Love means consequence.”
You will have to read this 5 ***** read in order to experience it yourself. I for one cannot wait for B. Celeste’s next release.
Gut wrenching. Soul searching. And yet all wonderfully raw, passionate and spell binding! Wow what a ride!!! This book will keep you on your toes and will give you the best hea!
“One day, somebody is going to be mine. Maybe then I’ll see what’s so great about it.” Charlie
At the end of The Truth about Heartbreak you are given a peak into a possible relationship between Oliver and Charlie. Ollie is Everett’s best friend and Charlie is the girl Everett and River adopted. The Truth about Tomorrow was epic, heartbreaking, forbidden, but most of all, beautiful. There will be readers that put it down because it’s not their cup of tea – but if I can give those readers one word of advice – stick it out! Charlie may be young but that girl is wise beyond her years – and she chose Ollie. She took control back – something that was so painfully taken from her and made it beautiful and hers. Charlie’s back story is hard to digest. Her nightmares killed me and I cried for her. The way Everett and River loved her – like she was their own – giving her the family she so desperately needed. They were perfect as her parents.
Ollie was conflicted, and rightfully so. His love for Charlie, and hers for him grew in stages and the reader is witness to their ever evolving relationship. They were two broken pieces that fit so well together. He is the epitome of what you see on the outside is not a reflection of what’s going on on the inside. He presents himself as fun loving Ollie, while on the inside he’s slowly breaking – which is so hard for him to grasp knowing he was raised in a loving home with parents that took care of him and were always there to support him. It took him a long time to get to the point of accepting who he was and what Charlie was to him.
Their journey was not an easy one – it was riddled with obstacles around every turn – from their own thoughts, those close to them and what society deems appropriate. I wanted to hold them both. I hated the separation, but the individual growth they experienced while on their own was necessary if they wanted to have a chance at a future. I seriously love these two characters hard!
“The truth about tomorrow is that it isn’t enough. Tomorrow isn’t guaranteed. It isn’t promised. But it’s a start. A step toward the someday that she’s always believed we could have. Nothing can measure the time or value of having Charlie in my life brings. Certainly not one day.” Ollie
The story wrapped up beautifully with a glimpse into the future. It ended perfectly! It is a story that will stay with me for a long long time and go in my re-read file. Barbara your words are amazing and I cannot wait to see what you come up with next.
5+ Stars
This book. OMG. It was so emotional, deep and very intense but I fell in love with this story and the way the author’s written words, (which were perfection by the way) affected me. I was drawn into the characters’ worlds, into their lives and the problems that they were dealing with. B. Celese left me wanting and breathless and at times stunned and emotionally drained.
This is Oliver and Charlie’s story, who we met if the first book The Truth About Heartbreak. This is about forbidden love and an age gap which is one of my favourite genres. These two people are beautiful in nature but flawed in so many ways. Charlie has had a tragic abusive childhood until she is adopted at the age of thirteen, my heart bleed for what this young lady had endured and was still trying to cope with, yet she was strong in so many ways. I did like Charlie a lot.
Finding a saviour and a friend in Oliver they connected in ways she just couldn’t seem to with anyone else. She could talk to Ollie, he made her feel safe, he made her smile, Ollie was my hero too, such an exceptional man who had many problems of his own but none that equalled Charlies.
This book owned me from the first chapter until the very last. At first a slow burn and then when it hit chapter 23, oh boy… I don’t think I’ll ever forget this amazingly wonderful book, I can’t recommend this enough. Well done B. Celeste.
As I sit here staring at my phone, wondering where to even start with writing this review. I am mind blown. Speechless! TTAT is absolute perfection. Everything about it is just perfect! I will go ahead and say you need to read book 1 before reading this one.
Now to the good stuff! I can count on one hand the amount of books that have made me actually tear up and this is one of them. I have never experienced so many emotions in one book. There was one moment I swear I was gonna have a panic attack from all the angst. I loved every bit of it! The chemistry between Ollie and Charlie is phenomenal! I felt it the whole time reading this book and I was blown away. It’s so hard to capture that kind of chemistry and emotion with words but B. Celeste did it! And she rocked it! She had me hooked from page 1! The risks, the consequences, the love, the heartache, I felt every last bit of it as I would if I were the one going through it. I could not put this book down! This book was a rollercoaster ride of emotions that left me in happy tears at the end. So many happy tears! TTAT has easily jumped up to one of my all time favorite reads! I definitely recommend….no I demand you to go get this book! And book 1 of course because you need to read that one too!
This story is AMAZING!! It’s PERFECT!!
This is not your average older guy randomly falls in love with a much younger woman…this is a journey…with all the feels.
I fell in love with Ollie in The Truth about Heartbreak and I’m so glad that he got his own book. Charlie & Ollie’s story is amazing. It is so well written and crafted, you can’t help but feel for the two of them and root for their forbidden love!!
*I was given an advanced copy by the author in exchange for an honest review.